Politics

Morcha band from Afghanistan performs at 8th South Asian Bands Festival

New Delhi, Nov 13 (ANI): The cultural diversity of SAARC member countries was showcased at the 8th South Asian Bands Festival held at Old Fort in New Delhi. Among the many groups was Morcha Band from Afghanistan, which thrilled the audience with rocking Afghani and Indian songs. The Band performed in India for the first time. The band received an overwhelming response from the audience. The Director of Sehar (an NGO) and South Asian Bands Festival, Sanjeev Bhargava, who has organized the show, said that the idea behind this festival was to bring the people from different nations together and promote cultural integration. He also appreciated the Afghani musicians. India and Afghanistan have strong cultural ties and the music binds the two nations together.

Nov 13, 2014

Nepalese rock band enthralls audience at the 8th South Asian Bands Festival 2014

New Delhi, Nov 13 (ANI): Bands from SAARC countries performed at the 8th South Asian Bands Festival 2014 in New Delhi. The event was organized by the Ministry of External Affairs, Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) and NGO Seher. The Nepalese rock band, 'Mukti and Revival' mesmerized the audience with their performance. Members of the band believe that culture of India and Nepal is very similar and such events help to strengthen it further. A total of 14 rock bands from across the Subcontinent performed at the Festival. Besides Nepal, bands from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, India (SAARC) and observer country, France played music from across various genres. The three day festival was concluded on November 9.

Nov 13, 2014

Fukushima operator confident it can deal with contaminated water

Japan's crippled Fukushima nuclear plant's operator TEPCO shows the press a redesigned water cleaning facility, which it hopes could solve the problem of radioactive water stored on the site. Duration: 00:32

Nov 13, 2014

Protesters burn state congress over Mexico 'massacre'

Protests rage in Mexico over the presumed massacre of 43 missing students. Duration: 00:35

Nov 13, 2014

Rajnath lauds CRPF on its diamond jubilee

Gurgaon, Nov 12 (ANI): Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, on Thursday lauded paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) during its Diamond Jubilee Parade in Gurgaon. The minister, in his speech, praised the paramilitary force and said it has proved itself in fighting against every odd-situation time and again. Singh added that the force won the trust of the nation due to its undaunted approach and vigour in dispensing its duties towards nation. Praising the patience of the CRPF personnel, Singh said that they do not shoot unless it is required. He also spoke about the hyper-mobility of the force and said it is always in action mode.

Nov 13, 2014

AAP releases first list of 22 candidates for upcoming Delhi elections

New Delhi, Nov 13 (ANI): Aam Aadmi Party on Thursday in a press conference released the first list of 22 candidates for the upcoming assembly election in Delhi. AAP leader Sanjay Singh while addressing the press conference announced the names of the candidates the party will be fielding for the elections in the national capital. According to the first list Jarnail Singh will contest from Tilak Nagar, Somnath Bharti will be contesting from Malviya Nagar and Saurabh Bharadwaj has been fielded from Greater Kailash. He added that AAP Chief Arvind Kejriwal’s name will be included in the subsequent lists.

Nov 13, 2014

Market expert on hike in excise duty on petrol & diesel

New Delhi, Nov 13 (ANI): The BJP Government has raised excise duty on petrol and diesel by Rs 1.50 per litre. The move comes in order to boost government revenues and contain budget borrowing that could put off a likely cut in the retail prices of the two fuels. Market Expert Akash Jindal spoke on the matter.

Nov 13, 2014

Enrollment in Kashmir school affected due to lack of infrastructure

Ganderbal, Nov 13 (ANI): The admission process of students at Nunar High School in Ganderbal district of Jammu and Kashmir has suffered a setback due to the lack of basic facilities and bad infrastructure of the school. The school is plagued by various problems and lacks even essential facilities like proper toilets and availability of water. One of the major problems faced by the school is a damaged boundary wall which compromises the security of students and teachers. Students often venture out on the road while playing where the flow of vehicular traffic is quite heavy. A student of the school, Rubeena Jan, said on Thursday the school lacks proper sanitation facilities. However, Chief Education Officer of Ganderbal, Sonaullah Bhat, denied all charges and said the school has provision of all facilities.

Nov 13, 2014

US hails Myanmar's hosting of Asia summit, warns over reforms

Nov 13, 2014

Fault was with medicines, not with the surgeries done, says suspended medical officer on Bilaspur in

Bilaspur, Nov 13 (ANI): Suspended Block Medical Officer Pramod Tiwari on Thursday said that the fault was with the medicines supplied to the patients in the sterilization camp case and not with the surgeries carried out on patient. He added that he is more concerned about the people who have suffered and that justice should be done with those who lost their lives. He further added that if the death of patients taken place due to wrong surgery, he would have accepted any punishment.

Nov 13, 2014

Book lovers throng fair in Jaipur

Jaipur, November 13 (ANI): The National Book Fair attracted many avid readers in pink city of Jaipur. Visitors thronged the six-day fair, which started on Sunday (November 09), in large numbers and scanned through a plethora of books. According to the retailers, the demand of books by foreign authors surged at the fair and they sold around 60 to 70 percent foreign books. They also said that due to internet and kindle, people preferred e-books more nowadays. Over 160 stalls were set up in which 117 publications took part. Meanwhile, researchers and students preferred books of English writers due to more information and details. Readers said that in this internet age also, many of them preferred paperback or hard bound books.

Nov 13, 2014

Manjhi clarifies controversial remark, says Tribals original residents of Bihar

Patna, Nov 13 (ANI): Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi on Thursday clarified his controversial remark on residents of Bihar saying that the tribals are original residents of the state and rest all are outsiders who have settled in Bihar. He added that the history of outsiders can be known by historians. He also said that he is not considering the outsiders as foreigners, in fact he has accepted them as the residents who have been living in Bihar since long but are not originally tribals of Bihar.

Nov 13, 2014

BJP hits back at Rahul Gandhi, says his life is based on 'photo oppurtunity'

New Delhi, Nov 13 (ANI): The BJP has hit back at Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi saying his entire life is based on photo opportunity. BJP leaders stated that Congress has committed grave mistakes due to which it has not been able to claim the position of opposition. Rahul Gandhi, during his address at the Congress event organized to mark the birth anniversary of Jawaharlal Nehru, had taken a dig at the cleanliness drive launched by the BJP saying their party leaders sweep roads for photo opportunity and spread hatred.

Nov 13, 2014

India agrees with US on food stockpiling, clears way for WTO deal

New Delhi, Nov 13 (ANI): India has reached an agreement with the United States on public stockpiling of food, Trade Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, said on Thursday (November 13), paving the way for the implementation of a global trade facilitation deal that has been stalled for months. The proposals will be reviewed by the World Trade Organization's General Council, she added, expressing the hope that approval would clear the way for India to sign a protocol enabling implementation of the trade accord.

Nov 13, 2014

HRD Minister assures quality yet affordable education

New Delhi, Nov 13 (ANI): Union Education Minister Smriti Irani said that the Central government launched new schemes to provide quality yet affordable education to everyone. She also said that efforts to create global academic network was also. While speaking at the 'Higher Education Summit 2014' organised by Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) in New Delhi on Thursday, Irani said the government initiated review for education regulatory organisations like University Grants Commission (UGC), All India Council for Technical Education (AITEC) so that a holistic path could be designed to cater to needs of the future. Her ministry launched the 'Study Webs of Active-Learning for Young Aspiring Minds' (SWAYAM), a web portal where Massive Open On-line Courses (MOOCs) will be available on all kinds of subjects. Irani also invited students and professors of foreign universities to India and take part in educational exchange programmes.

Nov 13, 2014